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The Best & Least Best “A Song of Ice and Fire” Books

Ranking time again because it’s where my
writer’s intuition took me and totally not
because I’m having trouble finishing the seven hundred other more “substantial”
posts I have half-written.

Hey, at least this time I’m going to be
working on something that’s both topical (like “Silent Hill” wasn’t) and
popular enough (like “Friendship is Magic” wasn’t): the “A Song of Ice and
Fire” books that inspired the badass HBO show “Game of Thrones”.

I read most of the first book, “A Game of
Thrones” back in ’04 when I was a junior in high school. I don’t remember why
the hell I didn’t finish it and continued the series, because what I do
remember was thinking “Holy shit, this is awesome.” (it might have been because
it was far from finished). I re-started the series a few months ago and
finished “A Dance with Dragons” (the fifth and most recently published book)
last week.

Bet you forgot Robert Baratheon was a huge badass.

As a result, I’m obsessed with the series.
Both books and TV. The universe is complex enough to warrant a shit-ton lot of
exploration, and the fact that it’s still unfinished gives a lot of room for
theories, speculation, and discussion.

I remember back when I was still in the
middle of reading, I was always interested in seeing others’ opinions on which
were the best and worst books; I suppose knowing it gives you a certain
spoiler-free idea of where the best and worst parts of the story are, and
something to look forward to.

Also, I feel that I have some complaints
about some narrative choices that were either taken by George R. R. Martin, or
that he was pressured into taking, that I don’t agree with.

With those additional excuses, I feel sufficiently justified to write this on
my own personal blog. As always, the ranking goes from worst (or least great,
as there are no bad books in this series) to best.

I am aware that because of the
unpredictable nature of this series, SPOILERS
are a particularly touchy subject. Any major spoilers are going to be blacked
out according to severity (greenare very minor
[mostly “this character is alive at this point”], orange
are medium, redare huge [don’t highlight
reds unless you’ve either read all the books or don’t give a shit]). However, if
you’re one of those guys who doesn’t want to know anything, even back-of-the-book stuff, what are you doing here?

Bugger that. Bugger you.

5. "A Feast for Crows" (Book 4).

GRRM got into some trouble when he wanted
to publish the fourth book. “A Storm of Swords” made a sh*tload of noise when
it was published in 2000, and followers of the HBO show only know half of why.
The trouble here came from two sources: first, the current version of “A Feast
for Crows” is the product of a dramatic re-write Martin decided to do after his
first version (which started five years after “Storm” but relied too much on
flashbacks to be coherent) didn’t really work out.

Secondly, when Martin was finishing up this
new draft, he found the book to be absurdly long, even for the standards of
high fantasy. Martin and his editors decided to split the book into two. As he
explains in the “epilogue”, Martin chose to split the book geographically
instead of chronologically. This means that both book 4 and about 70% of book 5
take place concurrently, just in different locations and with entirely
unrelated plot threads.

While this does sound interesting, the problem is that we were subjected to a
1000+ page book that didn’t include, in any way, four of the series’ main
characters, three of which are some of the most popular. The bigger problem is
that what’s left feels padded and unnecessarily long. There was also the
baffling choice to have way too many chapters dedicated to the least
interesting plot threads, whereas the ones you want to read the most get only a
handful of chapters (minor spoiler: Arya’s very
interesting story doesn’t get nearly as much page time as Brienne’s, which
could’ve been trimmed significantly).

This book, considered with 5 a bridge
between the first and last ‘arcs’ of the series’ whole narrative, also started
the trend of telling some aspects of the story through the POV of entirely new
characters, naming each something cryptic instead of using the character’s name
as he did in books 1-3 (for instance, instead of having a chapter named
“Victarion”, it’s named “The Reaver”; “The Drowned Man” instead of “Aeron”).
While this does shed some much needed light onto the semi relevant goings-on
outside of the established plotline, some were a tough pill to swallow.

Namely, the chapters taking place in the IronIslands were a
torturous read. A lot of somewhat
important shit is explained out of context, and it’s really hard to follow
unless you have an encyclopedic knowledge of the series’ universe, and a
perfect memory of the details that have already been mentioned, which you’re
not likely to have on your first read. To be fair, some of the IronIslands
characters, especially the ones that are going to become important (mainly
Victarion Greyjoy) are too fucking cool, and make me wish they had more page
time.

I think there were only two “outsider”
chapters in the whole book that I enjoyed. The rest I wanted to skip. Blergh.
It must have been disappointing/infuriating that nearly 10 years passed without
reading a Tyrion, Daenerys orJonchapter.

However, this book maintains and even
improves the top-of-the-line writing of the first three books; you can see how
Martin grew more comfortable as a writer, and managed to create some of the
most atmospheric and richly detailed scenes in the series. “A Feast for Crows”
contains a few of my very favorite scenes/chapters in the entire series, both
involving Brienne (to be specific, the beautifully serene
scene in the Quiet Isle in whichThe Hound’sfate is discussed, and her surreal final
chapter that ended on a cruel cliffhanger). Cersei’splotline, though drawn out, was very
funny to read, and the last paragraph of Jaime’swas a huge shock.

“A Feast for Crows” is a great book, but by
far the least enjoyable of the bunch. I would have loved to see the story split
chronologically so that it maintains the same groove without isolating
characters; this is an issue in book 5 as well.

4. “A Clash of Kings” (Book 2)

Way above “A Feast for Crows” in terms of
sheer enjoyment, I’m ranking “A Clash of Kings” down here because while it does
contain what’s probably the second best action scene in the series (the Battle
of Blackwater Bay), there really weren’t a whole lot of narrative surprises, or
truly unexpected developments. Hell, even as far as character deaths go, there
was only one relevant demise—though to be honest that one death was pretty
fucking shocking (I’m talking about Renly’s).

Not Rule 34; actual scene. Kinda.

This isn’t really a bad thing, and it
wouldn’t be in a lesser series, but “Clash” is a very logical continuation to
“A Game of Thrones” (book 1), which is kind of disappointing considering how
each subsequent book took the story and characters to really unexpected places.
I know this sounds contradictory, but the worst thing about “Clash” is that
it’s the best possible logical-next-step.

It suffers from being the middle child in a
coherent three-book arc. “A Game of Thrones” was brilliant in its structure,
having a reasonably standalone narrative, and “A Storm of Swords” (book 3) was
an absolutely perfect culmination to it. With “Clash”, it’s hard to really find
that dynamic narrative that makes this series great; a lot of plot threads go
nowhere by the end of the book and aren’t picked up again until after the book
ends.

I know; I’m reaching for straws here to
find things that are really wrong with “A Clash of Kings”, but the truth is
that it would be hard to imagine how it could have been much better. The action
sequence in its climax is phenomenal, the new characters are all likable
(Davos, Brienne and Melisandre are all awesome), it focuses on the war with a lot
of thematic resonance, gives some space to Stannis the Mannis (underrated
character), and sets up some great plots for book 3.

Sure, some plotlines are boring for most of
the book (mainly Bran’s and Daenerys’, who doesn’t do squat in the entire book),
and at this point Ned was still sorely
missed, but there’s more to enjoy in book 2 than not. Honestly, the entire book
is worth reading if only for the Blackwater and House of the Undying scenes
(which is worth a re-read after you’ve finished the series).

I only wish it had wrapped a bit more
tightly like the first and third books do.

3. “A Dance with Dragons” (Book 5).

Considering most readers, myself not
included, had to wait over six years for this book, and over ten for most of
its content, it was practically impossible for it not to be at least a little
disappointing—which it is. A little. Not a lot.

This book is fucking awesome.

Seriously. I was warned that, having not
enjoyed the narrative devices in “A Feast for Crows”, I would find some of the
same problems in book 5, which commits most of the same sins. However, at least
here it commits those crimes with characters we’re more familiar with, who have
stories we’re more interested in following. After the end of book 3, there was
nothing I wanted to know more than where the hell Tyrion’splotline would go, and not only was the question answered, I couldn’t have
wished for something better.

But the real reason why I fell in love with
“A Dance with Dragons” was because it’s comparable to “A Storm of Swords” in
being the one of the most incredibly unpredictable books I have read. The sheer
amount of twists—twists that aren’t limited to unexpected character deaths,
though there are those if fewer than
book 3—is staggering. By this point, Martin became much better at setups and
punchlines, and managed to end several chapters with shockers that are both
logical, consistent with previous developments, and completely unexpected (the Mance Rayder switcheroo, or the sudden existence of Aegon Targaryen, for instance;
I don’t even want to talk about the scene in which Jon
Snow gets Caesar’d, which, coupled with the
Red Wedding, is the only time I’ve ever gone “Holy shit” out loud while
reading a book).

"The Sorrows"

I also like how Martin kept introducing
new, wilder supernatural elements, without them seeming out of place.

Oh and best thing about it is that all these
twists are peppered throughout its epic length and not saved for the finale,
which was surprisingly quiet for almost every character.

One problem for me here is that Daenerys’ plot in particular, which I felt lagged
like a motherf*cker in books 2 and 3, doesn’t really get any better until very late in the book. Most of those
chapters could have been skipped entirely, but at least it had a massive
pay-off leaving a shitload of promise.

Oh and seriously, Martin, how about some
answers for the questions we’ve had since book 1? Unless Jon’s parentage is
ultra important for future events, it’s not an interesting enough mystery to
warrant 5 books. Just confirm our suspicions already.

Another big problem is that, like book 4, this one suffered from some undesired
snip-snip, and two extremely promising scenes (the
battle for Meereen, and the battle at The Wall)
that were supposed to wrap the book were left for “The Winds of Winter” (the as
of now still unpublished book 6). This also caused too many cliffhangers that
felt inelegant and abrupt because they were not written as cliffhangers. Too
many questions were left unanswered while only wrapping a handful of threads (I’m
so glad we finally find out—if barely—what happened to
Rickon Stark).

But other than that, “A Dance with Dragons”
is infinitely enjoyable. Tyrion’sstory alone
is the very essence of “A Song of Ice and Fire”: you never know where it’s
going to go, and it never goes where you don’t want to. I loved to see some of
my favorite characters get entirely new faces (Arya,
no pun intended, who becomes more and more powerful, or Jon Snow finally growing some balls), and some others
getting a better payoff than anyone could’ve wished for (Bran’s deification floored me; it could be the
best-written scene in the series, and ripe for speculation).

2. “A Game of Thrones” (Book 1).

“A Game of Thrones” is the perfect high
fantasy “Book 1”. I have never read anything like it. The process of
conceptualizing and then writing something like this without missing one beat
just wrecks my fragile little mind.

Seriously, yo. Writing such an elegantly structured story in a world this large, with such an epic scope, while yelling
“Your tea ain’t shit!” to every single established fantasy convention with one
hand on his balls and another flipping the bird, can only be the work of the
most ambitious genius. Unlike every single book in the series, “A Game of
Thrones” tells a story with a coherent beginning and end.

The heart of this story is as simple as “A
man tries to solve a murder”, but the brilliance lies on how well Martin
accentuates on every single detail of the focal plotline. Not one character is
there for the fuck of it, the pacing is lightning-fast, and the culmination
both satisfying and heart-breaking. Even if we really wanted the story to go elsewhere (Drogo’s
death was, for me, the most disappointing surprise in the series; I
really wanted that story to go where it promised to go), it’s hard to argue that
it didn’t end like it was supposed to. With the ending of “A Game of Thrones”,
George R. R. Martin basically said “Fuck your expectations; I feed on your
tears.”

And Old Gods bless him for it.

The character of Eddard Stark in itself is
kind of a triumph. He might be the single most likeable character I have ever
read in a book. Considering the relatively small amount of screen time he gets,
the fact that four books later you’re still
mourning his death and miss him, speaks for itself.

I’m having a lot trouble finding something
to legitimately fault “A Game of Thrones” with. Despite its relatively short
length, it’s no less ambitious than even the biggest books in the series or
genre. The second half is one big climax, so you don’t even have to read too long
for it to get extremely dramatic. With balls of brass, it created the staples
of the series, ridding itself of any “good vs. evil” bullshit. It has too many
surprises to name. It’s just perfect.

The only reason why it’s not #1 is because
“A Storm of Swords” has an edge on pure balls.

1. “A Storm of Swords” (Book 3).

I think I’m repeating myself, but I think
that the reason “A Song of Ice and Fire” is so unique and successful is because
it focuses on unpredictability in a genre that’s known for recycling stories
and having them be hugely successful, no matter how formulaic or poorly written
they are (the fact that “The Sword of Truth” by Terry Goodkind had 12
best-selling books baffles me).

“A Storm of Swords” tries really hard to
emphasize the unpredictable nature of the series, and succeeds every step of
the way. Anyone who’s seen the show’s third season, which only covers about 70%
of this book, gasped in surprise three or four times at the big twists (Jaime getting his hand cut off, orSansa marrying Tyrion), and more likely than not
completely shat their goddamn pants during The Red
Wedding, which took place in “The Rains of Castamere”, episode 03X09,
as the season’s climactic moment.

What most people don’t believe is that the
horrifying event in “The Rains of Castamere” is barely the beginning of what
has to be the most intense and lengthy climax in any book I have ever read. Of
course it’s still the biggest, most unexpected and probably most devastating
event in the entire series, but it’s in truth just a stone in a pond.

Admittedly, it’s a pretty huge fucking stone, because the ripples are enormous.
Martin wasn’t just fucking with you when he wrote The
Red Wedding; it’s the foundation of the series. And the ripples begin
immediately. Never mind the obscene amount of main characters that bite it
during the last 300 pages of “A Storm of Swords” (about 6 or 7 other main characters die after The Red Wedding. A feast for crows indeed), the story
redirects itself with almost every chapter, and the revelation that takes place
during the last paragraphs of the epilogue made me drop the book and go poop in
the corner.

Seriously, the last quarter of this book is
a complete clusterfuck. Season 4 should be insane.

But “A Storm of Swords” wasn’t just about twists
and unexpected deaths; it was way more than that. It was the perfect wrap-up to
a trilogy, it was the climax to every main character’s arc, leaving only
set-ups and no cliffhangers (except maybe Daenerys’,
but that goddamn story doesn’t go anywhere until book 5).

Martin also does a phenomenal job at
shedding light to past events that completely
changes the way we appreciate certain characters (Jaime
having saved the lives of all of King’s Landing, or the truth behind Jon Arryn’s murder (, for instance).
Who would’ve known in book 1 that Jaime would turn out to be one of the best
characters in the show?

Add to that several of the best action
scenes in the genre (The Hound vs. Beric, and The Mountain vs. Oberyn Martellto name a couple),
the introduction of several of the series’ coolest characters (I know they had
technically appeared before but The Brotherhood Without Banners is the shit),
the introduction of more, weirder magic that didn’t feel out of place, very fun
couplings of characters (Jaime/Brienne and Hound/Arya) and a lot of focus on The Hound, my
personal favorite character.

Books 6 and 7.

It’s difficult for me to express my
feelings towards “A Song of Ice and Fire”; as a fantasy writer, they’re both
inspirational and crushing to read. Even when they fail, they succeed—it’s
stupid how well crafted they are. It’s gotten to the point where every other
fantasy series I’ve read or am reading seems inadequate.

I can’t wait for the final two books: “The
Winds of Winter” and—tentatively—“A Dream of Spring”. I’m sure Martin will know
how to wrap this story satisfyingly. Hopefully he doesn’t cling too much to his
“LOL FUCK YOU!” reputation, because the ending of his magnum opus is something
that, I think, should really focus on making the entire thing worth reading.

I hope he realizes that “unpredictability”
shouldn’t be the main focus of something as grand as this. While it’s
incredible how easily he trades enjoyment for shock (“enjoyment” being the
badass shit we’d love to see, but never get to [e.g. Drogo
and Dany never reaching Westeros]), there is a point of diminishing
returns. If the series ends with the Red Comet falling on Westeros and killing
everyone, we’ll all be shocked, but it won’t be satisfying.

But I’m writing out of my ass (impressed?);
he wrote 5 incredible books, and I have every faith he will know how to write
an incredible ending that makes all the heartache worth it. With a title like
“The Winds of Winter”, you just know everyone
will fucking die.

I hope I look back in 4-5 years and be able
to put book 7 high up in the list. I’m a sucker for endings.

Thanks for reading! Sometime soon I’m going to write, with the help of a ASOIAF
nerd, a series-specific preview of how I/we believe season 4 will unfold. It’s
a huge tossup, all things considered. Stay tuned!